My XYL has commented that she'd like to have a "purse size" 2M HT to keep with her so she can get on the WX net from work, and as I'm primarily an HF type I thought I'd throw it out to the group here for suggestions. Here's what I'd ideally like to find:

Power output of perhaps 1-2 watts (as opposed to the 300 or so milliwatt output of the DJ-S11 and Q7 for example)External antenna connectionRugged/reliableEasy to operateProbably an alkaline cell battery pack would be better than a rechargeable due to infrequent useIt doesn't need to be a dual/multi bander, just 2M only.I tend to lean toward "Ickesu" (i.e. big 3, preference in that order) brand-wise. I'd be willing to consider a commercial equivalent if reasonably priced (as in Yaesu/Vertex) as a "channelized" rig programmed with a few selected local repeaters would easily do what she wants.

We have an Icom V8 which we bought for her several years ago but she'd like to have something smaller if we can find it.

Is there anything like I'm describing out there, or at least close? I'm willing to consider either new or good used as long as it's reliable and parts are still easily available if needed.

Advantages include being easy to program by hand, And it uses the very low cost and readily available NP60 camera battery!

Next up the price scale is the Wouxon, About a hundred bucks, And they do work well, And have very low cost accessories, BUT you about need the computer interface to program them!

The Yaesu VX 3 is a great little radio, Also uses the NP60 battery. (You will notice the more than a little way it looks just like the Baofeng that was copied from it!)(A AA type battery pack case is available for the Baofeng and the Yaesu VX3 if wanted, But the supplied Lithium Ion battery has a long shelf life)

The Yaesu FT60 is also a good proven radio, But is much larger and heavier, And requires a special battery.

>> ... The Yaesu FT60 is also a good proven radio, But is much larger and heavier, And requires a special battery ...

Well, all of the HTs you recommended require "special" batteries, really. Nothing bizarre about the FT-60R's pack - it is used by several Yaesu/Vertex HTs. And there is the FBA-25 AA case, too, to allow the use of either alkalines or NiMH cells.

Small ... proven reliability ... proven winner - that all equals the Yaesu VX-3R. And get her a Comer SMA-24 (or Pryme RD-98SMA) antenna, coil it up and place in a ZipLoc baggie for her to carry in her purse, too, for improved performance.

My wife and I scored a nice VX-3R for 100 bucks at a hamfest for her. At the time she worked very close to a repeater by us. It's small enough it fits in her purse. Power output is pretty low but with a nice close repeater it works well.

Sorry, but I just have to point something out--wait a minute now. "Purse sized" means one size to some--and another size to others altogether. I'm not saying that this is the case, but some ladies carry purses that they could comfortably put a small mobile rig in, battery and all!

I carry a VX2R in my Maxpedition rucksack (my buddies call it my 'man purse' but it sure beats having every one of my pockets stuffed full every day) along with all my other techno-geek paraphernalia, wallet, notepad, cellphone, meds, and glucometer. It charge it about once a month or so and I find even then it is hardly even below the 4.1Vdc full charge level on the radio readout. I have enough room to carry the VX2R, wall wart chgr, a small lapel-type microphone and a dual band 'spaghetti' type flexible whip antenna. It's a great "LITTLE" radio. My only problem is remembering the menu structure so I carry a fold up business card size cheat sheet with me.

Here is another option - If the repeaters she needs to use are on echolink, why not a smartphone with the echolink software? Versions for iPhone and Android are available. Since she is probably already carrying a phone it is one less thing to carry and she will be used to charging it so the dead battery problem won't be an issue.

My XYL has commented that she'd like to have a "purse size" 2M HT to keep with her so she can get on the WX net from work, and as I'm primarily an HF type I thought I'd throw it out to the group here for suggestions. Here's what I'd ideally like to find:

Power output of perhaps 1-2 watts (as opposed to the 300 or so milliwatt output of the DJ-S11 and Q7 for example)External antenna connectionRugged/reliableEasy to operateProbably an alkaline cell battery pack would be better than a rechargeable due to infrequent useIt doesn't need to be a dual/multi bander, just 2M only.I tend to lean toward "Ickesu" (i.e. big 3, preference in that order) brand-wise. I'd be willing to consider a commercial equivalent if reasonably priced (as in Yaesu/Vertex) as a "channelized" rig programmed with a few selected local repeaters would easily do what she wants.

We have an Icom V8 which we bought for her several years ago but she'd like to have something smaller if we can find it.

Is there anything like I'm describing out there, or at least close? I'm willing to consider either new or good used as long as it's reliable and parts are still easily available if needed.

TNX for the suggestions guys. We have a local hamfest coming up this weekend so she'll hopefully have a chance to see what's actually out there. (BTW another rig that I've seen mentioned as a possibility for a situation like this is the Icom P7; but what really mystifies me is that Kenwood apparently hasn't felt the "compact" HT market was worth pursuing. If they have a product of this type I'd be interested in knowing about it because if they make/recently made anything along the lines of the Icom P7/Yaesu VX-1/2/3 I haven't run across it.

Also, per the Echolink suggestion - my XYL's phone is an older basic flip style so it isn't "smart" enough for Echolink.

I keep a VX8-DR in my purse. With the antenna removed it is very compact.

Guys may not realize this but some of us change our purses with some regularity for lots of reasons. Sometimes it is best to just dump out the contents and go through everything to get rid of those old restaurant receipts, gum wrappers or notes to self.

Yes, one of my purses is gigantic and is practically an overnight bag. I could store a FT-817 in there (have not tried that yet). The HF dipole might be more of a challenge.

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